False Identity
by Reika Aoyama
Summary: A princess moves to Seigaku because her sister wants to meet her match in tennis. What happens when, suddenly, she's made it to the team.. as the team manager?
1. Prologue

FALSE IDENTITY – Prologue

"Wow! Look, Anne! Japan's developing skilled tennis players these days," my sister says, reading the newspaper. She adjusts her spectacles and reads on. "It seems like there's this one school that has the best tennis players. It's called Seishun Gakuen or Seigaku. But there are other schools, too: Fudomine, St. Rudolph, Hyotei."

I put down my cup of tea and stare outside the big windows of the castle. "That's just splendid, Shirley. The weather's perfect for a nice stroll." Secretly, I long for that one day I'd be able to leave the kingdom and travel alone. I might take Shirley with me. But that would be farfetched. How do you escape a huge island anyways?

Shirley puts the newspaper down and looks at me oddly. "And miss this wonderful opportunity? Are you out of your mind, Anne? No way!"

"What opportunity?" I look back at her with doe-like eyes. Suddenly, it hits me. "Oh," I finally say, "_that_ opportunity. We're moving to Japan?"

"That's exactly the case," I see Father enter the tea room, hands tucked behind his back. "You see, Anne, Shirley has been bugging me to send you two to Japan? It's been.. How long has it been, Shirley?"

"About a year or so," Shirley answers.

"You gave in to her whim, Papa?" I ask. "Does this mean you're not coming with us? It would only be Shirley and I?"

He nods to both of my questions. Yes! I want to stand up and embrace him, saying how thankful I am for being given this opportunity to be outside the lonely castle walls but I can't help but worry.

Shirley stands up and gives him a bear hug. "Thank you so much, Papa!" she exclaims.

"But where would we stay? Papa," I say in frustration. "As much as I would like to travel, it worries me that you'll be leaving us unattended."

Father nods. "That would be taken care of. I still have a kingdom to run, Annalise. Your mother and I will manage. I'll be sure to send Ned to look after you as soon as he returns home from college."

"You mean we'll be staying there for a long time?" Shirley couldn't help but squeal and give Father another hug. "Do I get to choose schools? Oh, Papa, please?"

Mother enters the room to join the conversation. "That would be great if you'll choose schools, Shirley, assuming you already have one in mind. If I were to make a guess, it's Seigaku, isn't it?"

Shirley smiles. "You're right, Mama."


	2. Chapter 1

FALSE IDENTITY – Chapter One

"Oh my freaking gosh! This uniform is in dire need of modifications," Shirley complains in Japanese as she puts on Seigaku's girls' uniform. "Can school uniforms get even more boring?"

I carefully put on mine without complaint. "Well, whose idea was it to study in Seigaku, neh? Oh right! It was yours."

She pretends she didn't hear it. "I am itching to show off my tennis skills. Aren't you just dying to let them hear your music?"

I scoff. "Yeah, I'm dying, alright," I say sarcastically. "Why don't we grab some breakfast and walk to school? It's going to take some time getting used to."

"Wait! I still have to remember myself." She looks at her reflection in the mirror and smiles. "I'm Shirley Charbonnet for New York, USA. I'm sixteen years' old. My parents are Franklin Charbonnet and Louise Charbonnet. I have a younger sister and an older brother. Also, I play tennis." She faces me. "What's your name?"

I sigh. "I'm Annalise Charbonnet. You can call me Anne. I'm fifteen years' old. My parents are Franklin and Louise Charbonnet. My older sister is Shirley Charbonnet and my older brother is Ned Charbonnet. I like to create and play music."

Shirley clasps her hands together. "Perfect! Now, let's go!"

I nervously enter the room. The teacher looks at me expectantly. "You must be the new student," she states. The class stares at me.

"Yes," I reply in Japanese. "I'm Annalise Charbonnet. My sister and I just arrived from America last week. It's a pleasure being here in Seigaku. Please take care of me." I bow down in greeting.

The teacher, who introduces herself as Miyano-sensei, smiles. "Do you have difficulty speaking in Japanese, Anne?"

I shake my head. "Not really. We were taught how to read, write, and speak in Japanese."

"I see. Just to make sure, I'm seating you beside an English speaking student. Echizen Ryoma, please raise your hand."

A boy with black-green hair lazily raises his hand. Miyano-sensei nods at me and I take this as a sign for me to sit on the vacant seat beside him. I do. Some students still stare at me from time to time in between lectures.

It seems that the first subject is biology, one of my weak points. Even though our tutor would explain how meiosis works over and over again, I still wouldn't get it. Fortunately, the class is still in the components of a cell.

Miyano-sensei gives us some papers to answer for the rest of the period. She says the papers will be due tomorrow. I lazily tap my pen on the paper while I go over the questions and write my answers.

What is a cell?

A cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all organisms.

I finish answering the questions in a few minutes and review my answers. I look around the room, watching some of my classmates furrow their brows over the questions. Some were opening their books and frowning. I therefore conclude the answers are not found in the book. I frown.

"Do you need help in answering the questions? You look troubled," my seat mate asks.

I gently shake my head. "I'm done answering. Thank you, nonetheless."

"I'm Echizen Ryoma," he says. "And you are?"

"Annalise Charbonnet. It's a pleasure meeting you." I finally look at him and smile. "Call me Anne, though. I insist."

"Hmm. How many siblings do you have?"

"Two. An older brother and older sister. Ned's in college while Shirley's here with me. She's planning on joining the tennis team. Good for her."

"Why? Don't you play tennis?"

I shake my head. "I never had the chance to play tennis. It seems to be a very interesting game. Shirley says so herself."

"There will be a ranking match today. Will your sister be joining?"

I beam. "You bet she is! It's the main reason why she chose to study here."

Classes were over and I make my way to my locker. I find Shirley in her tennis attire right next to my locker. "So, how do I look, Anne?"

"Classy," I reply, opening my locker and stuffing my books inside. "How long will the ranking matches be?"

"Not to worry. It'll be over before you know it. Why don't you wait for me and we'll go home together?"

"That'd be nice but I really don't want to stay and do nothing."

"Then join the ranking matches! I brought an extra racket and some spare clothes just in case."

"You know I don't know how to play tennis!"

"Of course you do! As long as you know how to run, hold a racket properly, and do a forehand and backhand correctly, you won't embarrass yourself. Trust me, Anne. You'll do just fine."

"I can run. Forehand? Backhand? I don't know those things!"

"Then I'll teach you! You're a fast learner, Anne. You'll pick up. Now change into these." She rummaged through her duffel bag and gives me her spare clothes. "Go change."

"You look amazingly stunning," Shirley says as I step out of girls changing room. "Okay. We have an hour left before the ranking matches begin and there's an available court in Block B." She throws me a racket which I clumsily catch. "No time for being clumsy, Anne. Time's ticking. We have to move."

Shirley teaches me the ropes of playing tennis while I try to digest everything she's saying and copy every stance she's doing. An hour passes and she grins at me. "I never knew I could actually make a good tennis coach."

I grimace. "I never knew I could actually play tennis. Well, not in this life at least." We walk to Block A where the announcements will be made.

We were shock to see both boys and girls participate. "I thought there are two tennis teams – each for the boys and girls." Shirley shakes her head in disbelief. "The more the merrier they say."

My face turns white. "No way am I making a fool of myself here. So much for a good first impression. Shirley, you can't expect me to join. I'd rather wait for you in the bleachers."

She pats my back. "Don't worry, Anne. You'll do great. Who cares if you'll mess up? We're just regular kids, here and not royalty. Besides, do you think I'll let you put my teachings to waste?"

My legs feel like jelly as I hold the ball in hand. It's my turn to serve and I throw the ball in the air. I wait for it to descend at a certain height before hitting it hard to the other side of the court.

The girl I'm playing up against misses the ball, much to my demise. Her braids are blocking her sight.

"15-Love!"

Another ball is thrown at me and I catch it. I do another serve and this time the girl hits it back. We continue hitting the ball back and forth before she loses her balance and trips over nothing.

I run to her and help her up. "Are you hurt?" I ask. I notice an angry red mark on her knee and take out a band-aid from my pocket. "Here. This will help ease the pain but we still have to wash your wound."

The umpire runs to us and asks if she's okay. He sees the wound and calls one of her friends to bring her to the infirmary.

"Thank you," the girl says. "You played really well."

"You, too." I nod at her and we shake hands. Her friend pulls her away and I watch them go.

The umpire was left with no choice but to declare me the winner by default. I blush. Can't they see that I'm a total amateur? I just had a crash course from my sister.

I get to win a few more games before I'm defeated by a guy who does acrobatic tennis. It turns out that he's a regular. No wonder he's strong.

He suddenly gives me a bone-crushing hug after the game. "You played great. I had to think hard to outsmart you. How long have you been playing tennis?"

I politely pull myself away from him and smile. "You won't believe me but my older sister just gave me a crash course a few hours ago."

His eyes widen in disbelief. "You're joking! Our team could use your tactical skills. You could be the team manager or something. Coach would agree with me."

"What do you think were you doing with my sister?" Shirley's voice booms. "I saw that."

I shrug as she approaches us. "How did your game go?" I ask. "This guy's a regular. He just defeated me and wouldn't believe that you gave me a crash course in tennis a few hours ago."

"Hence the hugging?" She eyes him suspiciously. "I don't think so."

"I'm Kikumaru Eiji," he says as he stretches his hand towards Shirley. "I'm a regular and hopefully, I still will be. Your sister will make a good team manager."

Shirley shakes his hand and smiles. "You have no idea. She likes things to be squeaky clean and in order." She turns to me and gives me a thumbs-up. "I made it to the team. Although the team's heterogeneous, it's cool."

Eiji blinks. "How did you know you're part of the team already! That's no fair! They won't be posting the names of the members until tomorrow."

Shirley winks. "I got to fish out some information from the umpires." She laughs evilly. "You made it too, Kikumaru Eiji. They're still debating whether or not to include Anne. Am I a good coach or what!"

I shake my head. "Whatever. Please excuse my sister for her sudden outbursts of insanity."

Shirley wouldn't stop bragging about how good she was until we got home. "I'm serious, Anne! There's a possibility you'll make it to the team."

"Nonetheless, I'd decline. My knowledge is limited to the basics. I'm a useless team member. I'm not ready for some rigid physical training."

"You don't know what you'll be missing. I'll get half of your weekly allowance," she threatens.

I sigh. "Fine."


	3. Chapter 2

FALSE IDENTITY – Chapter Two

"Hey Shirley. Do you think Eiji was telling the truth about me being a good team manager?" I ask as we walk towards the tennis team's bulletin board during lunch.

Shirley looks at the list posted and grins like a Cheshire cat. "I made it! It's not like it's something new now, is it? The umpires were telling the truth after all!"

I look at the list as well. Being shorter than my sister my eyes reach the bottom of the list first. And there it is with all its glory – my name in bold letters under the coach's name, labeled TEAM MANAGER.

Shirley sees this and gives me an encouraging pat. "You go, girl! Now my sister's team manager. It seems like Eiji wasn't joking at all. Oh look! You're a reserve player as well."

I stand on my toes to get a better view of the list. I see my name once again as a reserve right under Echizen Ryoma's name. He made it to the last spot on the regulars. I look up and see that Tezuka Kunimitsu is the team captain while Shirley is the vice captain.

"Congratulations for being the vice captain," I say.

"No big deal," she replies. "As long as I'm on the team, it's cool."

Seigaku Tennis Team's Official Roster

Captain:

Tezuka Kunimitsu (3rd Year)

Vice Captain:

Charbonnet Shirley (2nd Year)

Oishi Shuuichirou (3rd Year)

Kikumaru Eiji (3rd Year)

Fuji Shuushuke (3rd Year)

Momoshiro Takeshi (2nd Year)

Echizen Ryoma (1st Year)

Reserve Players:

Charbonnet Annalise (1st Year)

Inui Sadahataru (3rd Year)

Kaidou Karou (2nd Year)

Coach:

Ryuzaki Sumire

Team Manager:

Charbonnet Annalise

"Hello, Manager," Ryoma greets as I sit down. "What's the training schedule for this afternoon?"

I freeze. "Training schedule?" I didn't know there was such a thing. I seriously thought Eiji was joking when he said he'd recommend me as team manager. Oh my gosh! I don't know what to do.

He chuckles. "Calm down. I was only kidding. Inui-sempai usually takes care of the training schedule. This is the first time we'll be having a team manager. Wonder how it'll be?"

"I'm sorry if I wouldn't be able to live up to your expectations. I'm new at this. So is Shirley but I guess her confidence is gonna help her get through."

"Are you saying you're not confident?" He ponders on this for a moment. "You're also a reserve player, right? You said you don't play tennis."

I laugh. "Shirley gave me a crash course an hour before the ranking matches. She's bragging about how good of a coach she is to me."

"Seriously? They said you were good. Why don't we play some time?"

"Eh!" I involuntarily tilt my head to the side. "I can't! I'm not good. You could play with Shirley. She loves a good challenge."

"Annalise Charbonnet is scared?" Ryoma teases. "It's just a game. It would be fun."

I rack my brain for a good excuse. "I'm the team manager," I squeak.

"The more you should play tennis with us regulars. If you're not that good, I could teach you."

My face lights up. "Really? That would be great!"

"It will cost you two boxes of Ponta," he says lazily.

I immediately grab my purse. "How much is a box of," I trail off. "What's Ponta?"

Ryoma shakes his head in amusement. "You don't know what Ponta is? Seriously? Where did you come from?"

My mind starts to panic. "Uh.. I.. Uhm.. Ah.." I stammer.

I totally forgot you come from America. I come from America, too. If I still remember correctly, they also sell Ponta in the local vending machines."

Suddenly, I think of a good alibi. "I was home schooled, see? I don't get to go out often." That's true in some sense. Our kingdom is located in a huge island between America and Europe. I still believe it's nearer to Europe than it is to America.

"I see. Two boxes of Ponta. I'll help you look for it after practice if you want. Will you be taking my offer?"

"I'm not sure how much Ponta costs but I do want to learn more. I guess I'll be taking your offer." I crack a smile.

I borrow some of Shirley's sports clothes and change into them. She tells me that we have to shop for mine this weekend and I nod.

"Shirley," I say, "how much do two boxes of Ponta cost?"

She purses her lips. "As far as I know, a can of Ponta costs ¥500 in the vending machine near the courts. A box usually contains fifty cans. If you buy two boxes, it'll be equivalent to buying one hundred cans. Assuming that the stores don't give discounts for buying in bulk AND there really are fifty cans in one box, two boxes would cost ¥50,000. That's the maximum price you could get because of they do give discounts the price would be much lower. Why'd you ask?"

"¥50,000!" I exclaim. "Isn't that too high?"

She shakes her head. "This is Japan! The prices here may seem high, but they're really just worth a few dollars in America. Less than $300, I guess." She shrugs. "Why'd you ask?"

"How much is my weekly allowance?" I ask meekly.

"Papa said we each have ¥100,000 per week. He also said we both have to buy food at our own expenses. The light and water bills will be taken care of. Why'd you ask? It's so unlike you to worry about money. What's with those two boxes of Ponta anyways?"

I squirm and tell her about Ryoma's offer. "So yeah," I finish lamely.

Shirley does the most unexpected thing – she hugs me and squeals in my ear. "That is so awesome, Anne! That's, like, an excuse to spend more time with you."

"We're seat mates," I say as I wriggle out of her death hug. "Anyways, that's absurd. We just met."

"Do you believe in love at first sight?"

"I do. But.." I look down on my shoes. "You know.."

She exhales loudly in frustration. "The royalty thing? There's nothing to worry about! Ned's obviously taking over Papa's place as soon as he finds a decent girl to marry. Mind you, she doesn't have to be royalty."

She says those things a little too loudly and I cover her mouth. "You're too noisy," I hiss. I let go of her and frown. "I don't care. It's impossible. He'll find out who we are and I wouldn't know I if could trust him."

"Annalise and her trust issues," Shirley grabs her racket and practices some swings. "She has to be gullible sometimes and rely on people other than her family."

"Could you not talk like I'm not here? So what if I have trust issues? It's normal."

"No, it's not. You have to break out of your shell. I know you lock yourself in your room and turn your problems into music. It would be so much better if you talk to somebody about it. It doesn't have to be me but someone you trust. Start trusting! You're a team manager now. Nobody wants an emo manager."

"I. AM. NOT. EMO." I glare at her. I grab my things and start walking. "Ryoma's taking me to the store after practice. Just go home without me."

She whistles. "I smell romance!" She turns serious again. "If he ever hurts you in any way, Ned and I will break his racket, wrists, AND face. Got it?"

Coach Ryuzaki grins at me. "Glad you could join us, Annalise. Eiji told me you'd make a good team manager and I could tell he's right."

I blush and bow down. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Please take care of me!"

"Of course I will. All you have to do is observe the players play and decide which position they will be playing in on the upcoming Kanto Prefecture Tournament. However, you have to joining them during warm ups like the other reserves."

"That's alright," I reply. "When will practice start?"

"In a few minutes," a creepy looking guy with glasses says. "I'm Inui, reserve player. I play data tennis and am in-charge of the warm ups. You must me Charbonnet Annalise."

"Nice to meet you," I say. "You can call me Anne."

"Nah! I'd rather call you Annalise. It's formal. You are the team manager."

I give him a weird look. "I'm not old. There's no need to be formal with me."

"Whatever." He shrugs and walks away. "We'll be practicing in five."

Coach sighs. "That's Inui. He's probably off making some juice. Anyways Annalise, welcome to Seigaku." She shakes my hand and approaches the ball boys.

Shirley walks to me with a huge smile plastered to her face. "Guess what, Anne?"

"What?" I echo in a bored tone.

"I met this really cute guy who happens to be one of the regulars. His name's Fuji Shuushuke. Neat, noh?"

I roll my eyes. "Like I care. He can walk you home if he pleases. I still have to go somewhere."

"Alrighty then. Have fun."

We hear a whistle being blown. "regulars and reserves, one hundred laps around the court. Now!"

"One hundred laps!" I exclaim, jaw dropping. "That's – that's too much!"

Shirley shrugs and runs around the court with the others. Good for her, her body could keep up with one hundred laps, or maybe even more. My body is only capable of running from one side of the court to the other in a game.

Someone grabs my shoulder. "You haven't done any stretching yet." It was Ryoma. "I haven't either. How about we do it together?"

I stare at him blankly.

"If you want to, that is."

I snap out of my trance. "No! I mean, I'm okay with it. It's just that I'm surprised. I've never ran one hundred laps before." Or even in my life.

By the time we finished our stretching, they were finished running one hundred laps and are currently taking a short break. I can't believe it! Was I that slow? 

Inui approaches us with an evil smirk and two glasses of green colored liquid. I swear I saw some things float on those liquids. "Your punishment for missing the laps."

"I can be punished? But I'm the manager," I say.

"Then it'll be sad to put this glass to waste. How about we let Ryoma drink both?"

Ryoma's face pales. "I was just helping her out. She's new to this and stuff."

I take one glass from Inui and chug down all of its contents down my throat. "I never realized carrots and cinnamon make a good combination until now."

Ryoma twitches. "Anne, are you alright? There's a water fountain not far from here. There's a trash can a few meters away if you want to vomit."

"Why'd you think I would want to do either of those things right now? Inui's juice may look weird but it's actually delicious. I highly recommend you to drink this."

Inui grins. "Good for you, Annalise. Ryoma, why don't you take her advice and drink your share?"


End file.
